You'll be enraptured with our 2011 Silk and Garden tour.
You always wanted to find out where our Beautiful Silk came from? Enthused by what you saw in our “Story of Silk” CD? Yes? Then our Silk and Garden tour is for you. IT IS A ONE WEEK SOJOURN INTO THE WORLD OF SILK scheduled for May 7th to 14th 2011, led by our in-house textile media specialist Hannah French, for all ages. Price $AUD3800 plus airfares. Please book your airfares through your Australian travel agent or online, as we are not a registered travel agent. All our China itinerary is covered by a registered Chinese travel guide.
Itinerary: Saturday night 7th May 2011 Shanghai: Staying Saturday night in the Sofitel, on Nanjing Lu. Dinner on Saturday night is at MOJOs next tothe hotel. Sunday morning walk in Nanjing Lu and to Yu garden. This is a hugely crowded Sunday experience. Lunch early at Yu garden cafe, then into transport with Hannah and Marion, and onto the train to Nanjing. (3 hours) Sunday Monday night 8th & 9th May 2011 Nanjing: 4 star hotel accomodation, Nanjing Crowne Plaza, with pool. 3 nights. Depending on weather (which is warm, if too hot we'll do the inside visits, on nicer day we'll do the outside walks). 4 hour visit to the living living brocade museum - Nanjing , where you’ll see every process from designing the brocade to the master weavers, these looms require several operators to work in concert and the living museum produces silk brocade. The Ming tombs are an amazing array of outdoor walks, avenues, and a chair lift is wonderful way to get to the top of the mountain. Walkers will need to negotiate 15 minute walk to visit the astronmical observatory. Picnic lunches in the park most days, Chinese restaurant meals at night. Train to Suzhou (2 hours) Ming tombs, 2008 Tuesday Wednesday & Thursday night - gardens, silk and pearls. Suzhou: We will have our own bus from this time onwards - and this is our Silk and Gardens experience. Staying near the ancient centre, no swimming pool but very convenient, Yungor hotel, this segment includes a visit to silk factory, and you can observe all aspects of silk farming processes including animal husbandry, the harvest, steaming, boiling, spinning, throwing making mawata caps, & see looms weaving. Also whilst in Suzhou visit water villages where you will see fishing cormorants, many small local art galleries and small shops. A visit to a local embroidery thread shop, A visit to a local silk farm and a small village where many silk shops sell fabrics scaves and silk garments. Suzhou is famous for its gardnes, 2 gardens will be visited. Wednesday night theatre visit.
Friday. Early morning travel back to Shanghai on the bus calling in at Shanghai textile markets on the way back to the hotel. - Hannah will take all bags to the hotel and you will go with your guide straight to the Shanghai museum. Hannah will meet you at lunchtime at the Shanghai museum on the front steps for a picnic lunch. Then in the afternoon you are free to either visit the antique market with Hannah or rest at your hotel. We are to reconnect at Sofitel Hyland Nanjing Lu to enjoy an early evening meal in the Sofitel Hyland on Nanjing Lu restaurant. Map cards will be issued in Chinese so that we can all meet there and travel there by taxi. A boat trip in the evening on the river and then back to the French Quarter by taxi. Tour will finish at a hotel in the French Quarter after breakfast at checkout time. If you are travelling back to Australia and want to stay another day unassisted, this may be arranged as long as it is discussed at booking time so we can make sure your room is available.
Our tour leader, Hannah French, grew up on a farm near Horsham in Victoria Australia and gained the degree of Creative Arts. Hannah commenced at Beautiful Silks in 2008 and stayed with us after graduating, specialising in textile photography and film-making. Beautiful Silks' Managing Partner Marion Gorr and our Senior Australiasian Consultant Peter Lucena (veteran of nearly 50 years of textile travel in China) will be in China during the tour, and will be joining you at some evening meals. Our last evening meal on this tour together will be at the Hyland Sofitel. Marion and Hannah will then join you for a river cruise as a final evening to remember your tour. Here are some highlights of the 2008 group tour!
What’s included? What is not included?
Tour itinerary includes visits to :
We request you book your airfare to arrive in Shanghai on Saturday evening where Hannah will meet all arrivals from flights booked on the Qantas daily shuttle and sheppard you back to the French Quarter using one of the world's fastest transports systems, the MAGTRANS. If you are arriving QF408 from Sydney or QF404 from Melbourne, both flights arrive at 6.15pm, this is the perfect time to arrive to be met by Hannah. Please check before booking as our maximum number is 8 people, we do request you book your flight as soon as you book a place on our silk tour. Our travel agent in China will take care of all internal bookings, however getting in and out of China is your responsibility. You must book, take care of your visa and travel insurance yourself. We look after you from the airport until the conclusion of the tour on Saturday 14th May 2011 10am at the hotel in the French Quarter. You must also provide a declaration that you are fit to travel overseas on long flights.
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